Batgirl of the Future: Eyewitness of the Past
by Watership's Nightwish Rat
Summary: Two months after her most recent battle with Inque, Coba Brooklyn is back on duty as Batgirl. But her first night back on the job goes terribly wrong when Spellbinder sends her back in time and finds herself at war against the real Joker. Coba finds that she must also figure out how to get home before her half-brother, Terry McGinnis, is arrested for a crime he did not commit...
1. Prologue

**Author's Notes:**

**Yeah, I decided to make another BOTF story (I found that they're my favorite stories to write: a lot of fun for me, anyway). Please remember to review afterwards!**

**Enjoy...**

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**Gotham City, October 1999**

Bruce Wayne walked steadily along the sidewalk path on the side of the main road. He had an important meeting to attend in twenty minutes at his company Wayne Enterprises (which was a half hour from his current position at the pace he was walking at) but, strangely enough for a man of his size and build, he found himself walking slowly. At the same time, he felt no need to rush.

_I've been late to more important things_, he thought downheartedly. _I can only be on time to those of greater importance from now on._ _I'm sorry I didn't do it sooner, Tim. If I did, then the Joker never would have done what he did to you._

Wayne looked at his surroundings bitterly. _It won't be the same for me ever again. I have to deal with the scum of the city by myself from now on. Barbara resigned from her duties as Batgirl, and I can't let Tim continue to be Robin in case he relapses into insanity again._ He looked down sadly at his feet as they carried him across the concrete. _Another family of mine is broken- -_

_- -and it's all my fault, _again_. I just wish there were a way to undo it._

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**I know, this is pretty short and depressing for a prologue of mine. This will all make more sense as the story progresses. I'm also toying with the plot for ****_Return of the Joker_****, but I'm also changing it up quite a bit. Again, you'll understand it better as this story progresses.**


	2. Chapter 1: First Night Back On The Job

**Author's Notes:**

**Here's Chapter 1, everyone! Time to get this story rolling, eh? Please R&R and enjoy the best you can...**

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**May 2040**

"McGinnis, Brooklyn! Have you seen anything yet?"

"Not yet, Wayne," Coba Brooklyn answered through her black and blue Batsuit's com link.

"Has Dana reported in yet?" Terry McGinnis asked curiously, using his the radio in his black and red Batsuit.

"No," Bruce's voice replied. "I called her earlier, but when she picked up I could tell she wasn't her normal self."

"Meaning?" Terry asked impatiently.

"She suddenly came down with the flu," Bruce answered. "Herbst- -Dido- -has it, too. It's going around."

"Have you picked up anything on the scanners, yet?" Coba inquired.

"Yes, but so far nothing. I know this will scare you both when I say this, but- -"

"- -something's very wrong," Coba finished, hints of concern and terror in her voice.

An explosion off in the distance confirmed Bruce and Batgirl's suspicions. They all heard maniacal laughs echo throughout the city. "Mad Stan," Coba said quietly.

Terry immediately took charge of the situation. "Let's go!" he said urgently to Coba as he turned to the Batmobile, which was sitting a few yards away from them on the roof of Wayne-Powers. "We'll come up with a plan on the way."

Brooklyn nodded grimly and followed her half-brother to the vehicle. "Alright," she agreed. "Wayne, where did the explosion go off at?"

"I'm scanning the entire city right now," the old man's voice said gruffly. "I'll let you know when I find something."

The two half-siblings immediately hopped into the Batmobile. Terry grasped his wrists around the steering handlebars and lifted the vehicle into the air as Bruce's voice urgently crackled back over their radios: "Those explosions were at the Grand Hotel. Stan's got over fifty people in there."

"Just out of curiosity, but are the police there yet?" Coba inquired.

"They are," Bruce informed him, "but half of them are among the fifty-plus hostages."

"Even Gordon?"

"Yep, her too."

"Slag it!" Terry cursed. "It's terrible when _she's_ stuck in there!"

Coba grimly looked out the red window of the Batmobile. "And it's going to get worse in more ways than one," she muttered.

"How is it going to get worse, Miss Negative?" Terry snapped.

Batgirl glared at him, then looked at the floor in distress. "I don't know, Terry," she confessed, although her voice was dripping with anger. "I only know that it will."

Batman thought about what he heard for a moment, then shrugged it off. "Well, you're the psychic sidekick," he mocked.

The girl fumed with rage. "In case you don't recall, my psychic abilities saved our lives more than once!" she snapped.

"You think I don't know that?!" Terry shot back with rage.

"I happen to think that, actually!"

"What makes you- -"

"- -think that?! Last night when you sabotaged that police sting!"

"I thought I told you to _shut up_ about that!"

"Stop it, both of you!" Bruce barked into their radios. "Coba, control your nervousness about being back on the job. Terry, show your sister more consideration: she was nearly killed two months ago when you didn't. Besides, fighting each other will not stop Stan!"

Both teens looked at the floor of the Batmobile shamefully, both recalling their brawl with Inque two months before that nearly cost Coba her life. "I'm sorry, guys," Coba apologized guiltily.

"I'm sorry, too," Terry also atoned.

Smoke arose from the hotel as the two Bats came closer to the building. The youngest of the duo examined the scene carefully once their vehicle hovered over the roof top. "This is too complex for Mad Stan to do alone," she remarked gravely. "He must have someone working with him."

"_Everything_ Stan does is complex," Terry snorted. He caught himself before he could have insulted his sister even more, also saving himself from getting a Batglare from her that was even more powerful than that of the original Batman. "But yeah," he said with more respect, "you may be right."

Coba grinned grimly. "Wouldn't be the first time, bro." Her seriousness took hold of her once more. "I just came up with a plan. Did you?"

Terry shook his head. "I decided to leave that up to you when we go on patrol together," he confessed. "What's your plan?"

"You may not like it, but it includes you holding off Stan while I get the hostages out and find the other guy working with him," Coba replied. "You've dealt with Stan much more than I have, and you understand his fighting tactics better than I do."

McGinnis nodded knowingly. "I would've said the same thing," he agreed solemnly. "I don't want you to have to face him." He opened up the red windshield/door of the Batmobile. "Ready sis?" he asked, preparing to jump out.

"Yep," Brooklyn replied, copying her half-brother's antics. She placed a hand over her com link. "Wayne, we're going in," she informed him.

"Alright," Bruce's voice acknowledged. "Good luck to both of you: according to your feelings about this situation, you'll be needing it. And Terry- -"

"Yeah yeah, try not to make another mistake," Terry finished.

Batman jumped feet first to the roof below, opening his red wings to help himself glide down safely. Coba followed him, opening her blue wings to help her descend to the roof as well. Although the far more experienced Terry glided with ease, the far smarter yet less experienced Coba found herself struggling to keep from plummeting to the roof, but she still managed to land on her feet. She briefly contorted her face with pain. _Oh yeah_, she chagrined, _my left foot is still weak and sore from being broken and in that cast until yesterday._

Batgirl looked across the roof to McGinnis to make sure he was ready. Terry nodded in greeting and acknowledgement to Coba before he turned on his suit's camouflage. Brooklyn copied her sibling before they went inside the building. _Here we go_, Coba thought grimly, _for better or for worse._

~!~

Commissioner Barbara Gordon could do nothing as Mad Stan tightly pinned her against the wall with his strong left arm, pressing buttons with his hands that set off explosives inside of the Grand Hotel where many citizens were gathered. All of the exits were blocked by the debris that resulted from the powerful explosions. _Jeez, Barb_, she thought to herself with rage, _after being Batgirl you can't get away from this psychopath or save these people?_ She remembered something at that instant. _Am I seriously that stupid to not push the panic button right at my fingertips? Some commissioner _I_ make._ She pulled out a button with the word 'emergency' in capital letters written on it and pressed it.

A powerful hand tightly grabbed Gordon's wrist. "Go ahead, Commish," Stan spat, "make that call!" He tossed her aside like a rag doll and jumped onto the table in front of him. "This time, no one gets out!"

Stan started laughing maniacally, holding up another dreaded button to detonate more bombs. The onlooking crowd could do nothing but wait in terror for their lives to come to an abrupt end.

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**Author's Notes:**

**That does it for this chapter. A suspenseful note, I know, but I like keeping the readers- -and myself- -on the edges of their seats. I think it's more exciting that way! :P Please let me know what you think of this story so far!**


	3. Chapter 2: Stan's Partner

**Author's Notes:**

**Here's Chapter 2! When we last saw the two heroes, they were sneaking into the Grand Hotel as Mad Stan was about to detonate another bomb. Will they stop the madman in time? Also, will they find out who Stan's partner is? The answers to those questions will be revealed in this chapter. Please R&R and enjoy!...  
**

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An electric batarang cable shot through the air, wrapping itself to Mad Stan's right arm. Terry switched off his suit's camouflage feature before he launched himself at the disturbed explosives expert. Stan tried several times to get the electrocuted bomb switch to work, but to no avail. "You fried it!" he screamed in rage at Batman. "You—" Batman suddenly flew into Stan—and a wall.

Batgirl managed to move the large pile of rubble away from the main exit. She switched off her suit's camouflage feature and turned to the crowd seriously. "This way, hurry!" she said to the startled citizens urgently.

Luckily for Coba and the hostages, Stan was too focused on Terry to notice their exodus. "We live in a world of injustice and mental corruption, Batman," he angrily told the hero. "The people supporting them must all be destroyed!"

"Not if I have anything to say about it," Terry growled. He slashed off Stan's explosive vest with his wrist blades and tossed it aside as the villain detonated the small weapons inside it. "I'd normally try to talk people out of doing these things to think about what they're doing, but you obviously thought about it and have your heart set on it—" he grinned roguishly— "not that you even _have_ a heart."

Stan snarled at Batman. "Harass me all you want, man!" he spat. "It won't stop me from eliminating the problem: everyone!"

Terry smiled even bigger. "Where is this 'everyone' you speak of?"

"What?" Stan looked around the room in confusion. Not one person was in sight! "Why you—oof!"

McGinnis had slammed his fist into Stan's face at that instant. "Why are you blaming me?" he inquired. "I was here fighting you the whole time!"

The giant madman punched Batman forcefully before he ran in the other direction, breaking through the nearest cement wall and into the main hallway. The warrior flew after his adversary, knowing that Stan had a very large explosive somewhere in the large building. Unbeknownst to both of them, Barbara ran after them, her pistol out and loaded.

~!~

Coba dashed up the stairs of the immense building painfully yet with great determination. As she and her half-sibling had planned, she led the hostages to safety and was now searching for Mad Stan's partner. _I personally hope that he's close by, even if he _does_ happen to have several explosives with him_, she thought grimly. _My crippled feet are killing me anyway!_

Brooklyn froze at the sound of evil laughter. "My my, little Bat," a sinister, hissing and mocking voice echoed through the hall. "Aren't you the brave and foolish one?"

"Maybe so, Spellbinder," Coba shot back, "but at least _I'm_ not the one who uses expertise in psychology to play tricks on the minds of other people. Are you not satisfied with how it effects _you_? Is that why you do this to others?" Although the evil psychologist made the blood in her veins freeze with fright, Coba knew that the best way to hide her fear was to mock her opponent.

Spellbinder, whose real name was Ira Billings, knew this too.

"Mocking me is not going to hide the fact that you're scared half to death of me," he hissed, stepping out of the shadows.

"Tell me something, Billings," Coba said as boldly as she could, shooting the villain an icy Batglare. "Are you working with Mad Stan?"

Billings smiled evilly at the young Bat. "You guessed correctly, runt: I am indeed working with that muscle-headed oaf. He held up a strange sphere. "I bet the truth is making you even more uncomfortable. Let me help ease your fear."

Batgirl immediately looked away from the villain and the sphere. She knew that to look at the ball Spellbinder was holding would mean the loss of the sense of reality. "No thanks," she muttered.

The teenager swore she could hear Spellbinder smile even more wickedly. "I knew you'd say that."

"Oh, you did?" Coba could not help but remark mockingly. "You may be a psychologist, but you don't know everything about how people think."

Ira grabbed Coba by her right arm and yanked her towards him. He quickly slapped handcuffs around her wrists, unaware that she had already switched on the video link in her cowl for Wayne, just in case the villain made an illusion. "Let's see how funny you think this is, runt!" he growled as he held the sphere in front of his captive's face.

Coba wildly struggled to be free, but Billings's grip was too strong. Her eyes were shut tightly to avoid staring into the deceptive ball. "What do I do, Wayne?" she whispered quietly into her com link. "I can't get away."

"Look into the ball and go with whatever Spellbinder has planned," Bruce's voice answered gravely. "I'm sorry I can't come up with anything better."

"I forgive you. I can't think of anything better, either," the girl replied.

Brooklyn reluctantly looked at the ball. She blinked painfully and cried out in surprise a moment later as the ball flashed a brilliant white light. An overwhelming sense of environmental change filled her senses, her shock at the sudden change causing her to faint.

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**Author's Notes:  
**

**_Another_ suspenseful note?! I know, I'm bad. :P Please leave a review in the box below! I love reading those: they help me figure out what's good about my stories and what's not as good.  
**


	4. Chapter 3: Where's Coba?

**Author's Notes:**

**Here it is, folks: Chapter 3! In the last chapter, Batman got into a fight with Mad Stan and Coba fainted during her confrontation with Spellbinder. Where is Coba now? The answer to this question is (drum roll, please... I said DRUM ROLL PLEASE! Thank you! (and pardon the "Beware the Creeper" reference)) concealed in this chapter.**

**As usual, please R&R and enjoy...**

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"Coba!" Bruce's voice yelled worriedly. "Are you there?"

Batgirl groaned as she opened her eyes once more, just about thirty seconds after she had passed out. "I'm okay," she said weakly. "I have no idea where I am, though."

"Describe the scene for me," the old Batman said urgently.

Coba looked around her and described everything she saw as she pulled out a batarang and undid the locks of the handcuffs around her wrists: a large trash bin, a beautiful sunset sky, a dirty alleyway between two brick buildings, and the rancid smells of garbage and cigarette smoke—but no sign of Spellbinder. "This sure isn't Neo-Gotham. What do _you_ see?"

"Give me a second," Wayne replied. "I lost video frequency when that light flashed. Don't let your guard down yet: wherever you are, it doesn't sound friendly."

A figure wearing yellow and red jumped along the tops of buildings. "I agree with you on that, Bruce," Coba said quietly, tossing the cuffs aside. "I think I see Robin."

The girl could tell Bruce was surprised. "Which Robin?" he asked urgently.

"Tim Drake," Coba whispered. "He's on his own, by the looks of it."

"Help, HELP! " a woman's voice cried out shrilly. "Somebody please, help!"

Bruce had also heard the screams. "Coba, get out of there!" he yelled urgently. "Things are about to get intense."

"I've dealt with more intense things, Wayne," Coba said matter-of-factually. "I'm going in."

Wayne was about to scold his ward, but then caught himself. He knew it would be useless to try to talk Coba out of getting involved. "Alright," he gave in, "but be careful."

"I will." Coba flew over the building to her right, getting a glimpse of the scene below: two thugs had a woman cornered at the end of the alley, but then Robin intervened by kicking them and knocking them senseless in the blink of an eye. "Whoa," she breathed in awe.

"What is it?" Bruce asked concernedly.

Coba was about to respond when she saw and heard something that made her blood boil. Robin stood over the unconscious forms of the two thugs triumphantly, unaware of the woman in distress removing her cloak and advancing behind him. After seeing all of the items in the Batcave, Coba knew who the woman was. "Harley Quinn," she murmured.

"That evens things out," Robin said, still unaware of Harley.

The villain pulled out a large hammer. "Not really, Bird-boy," she said gleefully.

Robin turned around too late as Harley prepared to swing the hammer at him. He did not even have enough time to blink.

Luckily for him, however, Coba was within the premises.

The Bat swiftly swung a batarang at Harley Quinn's hand. The impact on her hand caused Harley to scream in pain and release the hammer. Coba slammed the woman to the ground forcefully, instantly knocking her unconscious. The girl turned to Tim, who was frozen with shock at what she had just done. "Are you okay?" she asked concernedly.

Tim nodded, not once taking his gaze from Harley's limp form. "Is she dead?" he asked.

"Unconscious," Coba answered. "I recommend we get out of here before Joker—"

"Hello, kiddies!" a sinister voice said from the shadows.

"—appears," Coba finished uncomfortably. She and Tim turned to see the Clown Prince of Crime himself step out from a building's shadow, grinning evilly. Brooklyn had not known much about the real Joker, for Bruce did not talk about him much, but she knew very well that he had something planned for Tim and was not afraid to include her in it. She watched in terror as Joker pulled out a stun gun from his left pants pocket, although she immediately came back to her senses. "Look out!" she yelled, launching herself at Tim.

Joker fired the gun at where the two children were standing a moment before. He aimed at their fleeing forms, but was enraged when they were out of the weapon's range. "Darn it!" he spat. The villain glared in the direction the two Batfamily members ran in. "You may have gotten away this time, Bats, but you won't be so lucky next time!" he screamed with rage.

~!~

Bruce sat at the computer in the Batcave, feverishly trying to regain video frequency during Coba's strangely real encounter with Harley and Joker. "What on earth," he muttered irritably. "I'd normally have it fixed by now."

Ace, who was laying on the floor next to Bruce, suddenly lifted his head towards the main entrance and growled. _Probably Terry back from fighting Stan_, the old man thought. _He and Ace never really have gotten along._ The person he saw, however, was not who he expected.

But he was not very surprised, either.

"Barbara," he gravely greeted.

Gordon walked angrily into the Batcave, ignoring Ace's dangerous growls. "Where is he?" she demanded to know. "Where's McGinnis?"

"He hasn't returned," Bruce said sagely. "Why do you ask?"

"He crossed the line this time, Bruce," Barbara growled.

Wayne was unmoved. "What did he do now?" he asked suspiciously. "You're not flying over the handle again because he messed up another sting he didn't know about, are you?"

Barbara shot a Batglare at Bruce, not seeming to notice him return it with more ferocity. "I saw him kill Mad Stan, Bruce!" she snapped. "By my book, that's more serious than messing up a sting."

Bruce was shocked by what he heard, but kept his tough composure. "It is by my book too, Barbara, and you should already know that. But I'm having a tough time believing you."

"Would I ever lie to you," the commissioner snarled.

"Well, there was this one time—" Bruce began.

"We're off topic," Barb interrupted sternly. "If I find him—and I will whether you help me or not—I'm taking him in."

"If you do that, you'll risk exposing his and my secrets, even yours," Bruce warned.

"Believe me, I've considered the ramifications. I also have a husband running for mayor, and his campaign might go under once word gets out about this." Barbara turned to walk out of the cave, now revealing her true emotions about the situation. "I'm sorry, Bruce," she said sadly, "but he just went too far this time."

The first Batman sadly watched his old friend leave. It was then that he remembered something he had to tell her about. "Barbara," he called.

Gordon turned around. "What?" she asked, her tough self quickly returning.

"Did you happen to see Spellbinder there?" Bruce asked urgently.

"No, I didn't," the first Batgirl confessed. "Why?"

"He's done something to Coba," he replied. "Have you seen her?"

"No. What exactly has he done to her?"

"I'm not completely sure, but I heard her speak of old times."

Barbara was now very concerned. "What do you mean by 'old times?'"

"When Tim Drake was Robin. She's been describing the night Joker had captured him to- -" He stopped. "I've been trying to regain frequency from her vid link, but—hold on," Bruce said suddenly. He watched the computer screen begin to flicker into focus. "Barb, come see this!" he exclaimed.

The commissioner immediately rushed to her former mentor's side and looked at the screen. Her eyes grew wide with shock. "My God," she murmured in surprise.

There, upon the computer screen, was an unsteady visual of Tim in his Robin suit, catching his breath in a dark alleyway. "I hate to break this to you, Bruce," Barb said regretfully, "but—"

"—yeah, I know," Bruce interrupted, his voice quieted by terror.

~!~

Robin and Batgirl had run several city blocks away from where Joker and Harley had ambushed them before they came to a halt behind a dumpster in a nearly pitch-black alleyway, panting exhaustively for breath. "That was a close one," Coba gasped.

"Uh-huh," Tim rasped. "Too close. You okay?"

Coba nodded vigorously. "Yeah. You?"

"Yeah." Tim looked at her curiously. "Who are you?" he asked.

Brooklyn was about to respond when Bruce's voice shouted through her com link. "Coba! Are you alright?"

"Yes, Wayne, I'm fine," Coba quickly replied, hardly noticing Tim's shocked expression at the mention of the original Batman's name. "What's—"

"—going on? For one thing, your brother is being accused of murder by Barbara." Bruce paused as Coba gave out a sigh of despair and confusion. "And if _that's_ not bad enough," he continued, "I'm seeing the exact same thing you are."

Batgirl's blood froze, for she knew that it could only mean one thing. She turned to Drake with her eyes wide. "Robin," she said quietly, "my name is Coba Brooklyn. This is probably going to be hard for you to believe, but—"

"You don't have to finish," Tim interrupted. "I know what you're going to say: you're from the future."

The girl nodded glumly. "Yeah. Do you think I'm lying?"

"No," Robin replied. He suddenly became dangerously serious. "Look, future girl," he said with a hint of disdain in his voice: "in case you haven't already gotten the message, this is my city. You can either accept it, or get out of my sight."

Coba shot her most powerful Batglare at the boy, causing him to shudder in surprise. "What makes you think that I don't know that?" she said icily. "I do happen to know that, and whether you like it or not I'm stuck in this place until I can get back home, and heaven knows how long that will take. Do you get the message, or will I have to repeat it?"

Tim nodded as if in a trance, still shocked at the knowledge that Brooklyn's glare had more of the blood-freezing effect than that of the original Batman. "I get the message," he said sagely. "But how are you able to glare like Bat- -"

"What are you doing in our alley, half-pints?" a dark and sinister voice demanded to know.

"- -man?" Tim finished uncomfortably.

The children turned in surprise to see a gang of thugs walk towards them, murder blazing in each member's eyes. "We've got little Bats on our turf!" the speaker announced to his fellow members. "Tell me again what we do to kids dressed like Robin and an odd Batgirl who come here uninvited, Hal!"

The largest member of the gang smiled ruthlessly, the gold crowns on his few remaining teeth shining menacingly in the light of the setting sun. "We torture and kill them, boss!" Hal replied.

The leader nodded in agreement. "That's right, big guy." He pointed a fat finger at Tim and Coba. "Get them!" he ordered, a deep growl in his baritone voice.

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**I know what you guys may be thinking: "Quit torturing us with suspenseful endings for chapters!" Sorry folks, but that's a no-can-do for now. :P**

**I planned Coba to be sent back in time by Spellbinder, but I had originally planned to have her save Jason Todd from the Joker. When I considered my plans more carefully, I realized that not only did Jason have nothing to do with ****_Batman Beyond_**** (I already knew that, of course), but it seemed kind of odd to combine that ****_Batman_**** universe with the ****_Beyond_**** universe. So instead, I had her save Tim Drake from Joker, which makes much more sense in the ****_Beyond_**** universe. There you go: blueprints to the story (sort of).**

**I recently created another character poll for this series and put it up on my profile page. Check that one out once you get the chance!**


	5. Chapter 4: Battle In The Alleyway

**Author's Notes:**

**Here's Chapter 4! I'm sorry it took so long to get this one posted. :( In this chapter, I'm including the different dates to ensure that you don't get confused when it shifts from Bruce and Barb to Coba (and vice versa). Please R&R and enjoy...**

* * *

**August 1999.**

The gang advanced upon Coba and Tim, causing them to walk backward until they had their backs against the alley's back wall, which was bearing the glistening chrome of steel chains. "I'm sorry, Coba," Tim said to the girl in a quiet, sad voice. "There's no way out of this one."

The gang leader's strong hands pulled the two Batfamily members towards him and his followers. He tossed Robin effortlessly to the other gang members standing to the right, but kept the struggling Coba in his grip. The ruthless thug slammed Batgirl against the wall while still holding on to her, knocking the breath out of her lungs. "What's the matter, girly?" the villain mocked. "Can't seem to get away, can you?"

Coba coughed painfully for air as the man shackled her hands to the wall with the chains before he pulled out a knife and backed away from her. Drake fought wildly to free himself of his captors' grasps, knowing what their leader was planning to do to the future Batgirl. "Leave her alone!" he shouted.

The boy's cries were greeted by evil laughter. "Or what, bird-brain?" the leader jeered. "You're going to break loose and kick my butt? Look around you, idiot: you're surrounded by the toughest thugs in the streets of Gotham! There's no way for you _or_ your girlfriend to escape."

"I'm _not_ his girlfriend, punk!" Coba shouted angrily, disregarding her knowledge that her shouts would only encourage the villain even more.

The leader handed the blade in his hand to Hal. "Oh, I'm sorry, runt," he insincerely apologized. "I did not mean to misjudge you." He motioned his hand in a strange way, to which Hal replied by throwing the blade at Brooklyn. She screamed painfully as the blade grazed her right side, leaving a long but non-threateningly deep wound in its wake. The leader picked up the knife and dangerously held it up to Coba's throat. "I only mean to hurt and kill you," he snarled venomously into her right ear, "slowly... and painfully."

Tim suddenly pulled himself free of the thugs' tight grip, immediately jumping headlong at their fierce leader. He flung the man at the other gang members. "I told you to leave her alone!" the colorful warrior growled.

"You should already know that I don't take orders," the leader shot back. "Especially not from little playsuit-wearing children like you!" He motioned towards the boy. "Get him!" he ordered his followers. "We need him alive!"

Robin stood readily, but not before he pushed a small button concealed in his utility belt- -an action that was noticed only by Coba. The Boy Wonder somersaulted aside as one of the thugs swung a knife at him, the blade narrowly missing the imprisoned girl's stomach. Another thug threw a punch at Robin, which the boy deflected. Unbeknownst to him, Hal was sneaking up behind him while the leader was heading towards Coba.

Batgirl knew she had no time to warn Tim or scream for help, but she also knew that she had to do something fast. Thinking quickly, she launched a batarang out from her left wrist at the thug sneaking up on the boy. The weapon grazed Hal's back. Hal screamed painfully, to which Robin instinctively responded to by kicking him between the ribs, thus rendering him incapacitated for the rest of the battle.

The gang's leader grabbed Coba by the throat, not noticing her pull out a batarang from each wrist. "End of the line, girly!" he growled. "Any last words?"

Coba grinned malignantly. "Yeah," her voice managed to gasp: "_don't _call me 'girly!'"

Before the villain had time to react, the small warrior wrapped her legs around his and flipped him aside. The leader fell to the ground in a senseless heap. The three remaining thugs and Robin looked at Coba in surprise as she twisted the two batarangs from her wrists into the locks of the shackles and quickly freed her hands from them. She slightly winced as her weight shifted to her crippled feet once she was more on the ground than she had been for the past minute. _Oh yeah_, she chided herself,_ I got out of the cast recently and my right foot is still in bad shape from about thirteen years ago. What happened to taking things easy like I was told by the doctors?_

One of the two gang members not incapacitated was the first to recover. He took advantage of this opportunity to grab Robin in a headlock. The villain glared at Batgirl menacingly. "You'd better give it up, runt!" he shouted. "The Boy Wonder here will pay the ultimate price if you don't!"

Coba glared icily at the thug. "Not on my watch, moron!" she declared.

Brooklyn threw a batarang at the man and grazed his arm, causing him to scream in pain and release the boy. The other thug lunged at her, but Coba was ready for him. She punched him in the face and swiftly tripped him. Her gaze shifted to the thug that had just released Robin as he prepared to punch her. Coba quickly dodged the punch, tripping her foe as she did. The villain had the wind knocked out of his lungs once his back collided painfully with the ground. The small warrior continued to glare at him, but there was also a competitive smile across her face. "Maybe _you_ should give it up, punk!" she growled in a mocking tone.

The terrified thug managed to get back up to his feet and started to run out of the alleyway. A batarang-bolas hybrid shot through the air, wrapping itself around the gangster's chest. Two of the other thugs chose this time to flee as well, narrowly escaping from being caught by the strange batarang-hybrids. Coba and Tim, in alarm, both looked in the direction the weapons came from to see a tall, muscular caped figure standing on top of a building.

"Batman!" Tim called out in greeting.

The gang leader rose up to his feet as Batman prepared to swing himself to where Robin and Coba were standing. The villain charged stealthily towards the two children, who both had their backs to him. Brooklyn, her hearing being more acute than that of Tim's, was the first to notice him. Spinning on her right foot, she forcefully punched her adversary below the chin. The thug fell backwards and onto the cement ground of the alleyway. He was about to get up again when Coba jumped onto him, managing to pin his large body down with her much smaller- -and much lighter- -self. Her cold, unforgiving eyes dangerously glared into his terrified ones.

"Who sent you after us?" Coba demanded to know, using her toughest voice.

Batman and Robin tried to pry the future Batgirl away from the man, but they found that it was useless. "Let him up," the younger version of Bruce Wayne ordered. "He's not worth it."

"I'm _not_ trying to kill him!" the girl snapped, knowing what was going through the older fighter's mind. "I'm trying to get answers, you idiot!" She suddenly felt ashamed for yelling at him, thus letting down her defenses. _I'm yelling at the man who would do everything he could to keep me alive and take care of me in the future_, she thought in irritation at herself. _Way to go, kid, way to go._ "I'm sorry, Batman," she apologized.

The thug threw Coba off of him at that moment. He was about to run when all three Bats caught him again. "She asked you a question," Batman snarled. "Answer it!"

"I'm not working for anyone!" the thug yelled, making sobbing sounds nervously. "These two ambushed me and my gang for no reason!"

Coba completely lost her cool. "Liar!" she shouted angrily. The man stopped whimpering numbly, afraid to know what Coba would do next. She grabbed him by his shirt collar roughly, glaring into his eyes once more. "_You_and your thugs attacked _us_. You were going keep Robin alive and kill me! It's obviously because you want me out of the way. I even heard you say that you needed him alive! Answer me now: WHO ARE YOU WORKING FOR?!"

"The Joker!" the thug shrieked in terror. "I don't know why he wants the boy or why he wants you dead. We're just carrying out his orders- -ugh!" The sound of two gunshots echoed through the alley as the villain and one of his followers suddenly went limp.

Another gunshot rang out. Coba painfully grunted before she fell to the ground, clutching her already wounded side, as the bullet that grazed it made it dangerously deeper. Batman and Robin bent down to help her, only for Batman to be shot as well. Tim looked down the alleyway in surprise to see a familiar silhouette stretch across the concrete. "Whatcha gonna do now, Bird Boy?" the shadow mocked.

Tim glared angrily at his enemy. "I always thought you liked surprises, Joker," he shot back.

Joker smiled wickedly. "Try me," he challenged slyly.

Only Coba knew what both Tim and Joker were going to do. "Robin, don't!" she called out in warning.

The small warrior's warning came out too late: Tim had already made up his mind. The boy ran headlong at the villain, who also knew what he was going to do. Joker pulled out a needle with sedative in it, but Robin was not able to see it. Robin threw himself at Joker, who immediately slammed the needle into the Boy Wonder's right arm. Tim gave a pained cry, and then went senseless. Joker laughed maniacally as he ran out of the alley, taking the unconscious form of Robin with him.

That, however, was not before he threw a bomb into the alley.

~!~

**May 2040.**

Bruce, Barbara and Ace all sat tensely in the Batcave as they heard the gunshots from Coba's location sound off, the sounds echoing through the cave as they did. Ace barked in dismay at the sound of Coba's pained grunt. Bruce placed a reassuring hand across his canine companion's shoulder blades, still staring in terror at the scene. "I remember this," he muttered.

Barbara did not notice her former mentor's distant words. She drew in a deep breath at the sight of Tim dashing towards the Joker, despite Brooklyn's urgent warnings. It was Gordon's turn to give a cry of dismay, but at the sight of Robin being abducted by the villain. Then she saw Joker throw the bomb.

"Coba!" she screamed. "Get out of there!"

Wayne grabbed the right hand of his former apprentice- -also his former lover- -reassuringly. "Don't worry," he said sagely, "we will."

The former Batgirl wanted so much to scream at Bruce for not showing enough concern for the young girl and her predicament, but, although she was absolutely terrified by it, she then realized that the old man stood the ground to not be panicking:

He was, after all, there to witness it.

~!~

**1999.**

Coba watched as the bomb Joker threw rolled closer to where she and Batman both lay wounded in the middle of the dirty alleyway. She read the numbers on the timer once it was close enough: forty-five seconds. Batman painfully clutched his injured chest, groaning as he did so. "How much time do we have?" he asked Coba.

The girl managed to stand up on her feet. "Not very long," she gasped. "Can you sit up?"

"Yeah," Batman replied, sitting up. He watched as Coba limped towards him. "What are you doing?" he asked, suddenly curious.

The future Batgirl winced as she grabbed Bruce below his arms. "Getting us out of here is what I'm doing," she stated matter-of-factually. "I'd pray that I don't crash if I were you."

The rocket launchers at the bottom of Coba's suit's feet flared up, thrusting her and Batman into the air. Her suit's wings opened up at that moment, allowing her to steer away from the alley as she flew. She felt her energy drain faster and faster as blood poured from her wound. Noticing Coba's failing health, Batman looked around for something, then pointed at it once he found it: the Batmobile. Coba instantly got the message, gliding down to the vehicle. The bomb they fled from suddenly exploded, thrusting them to the ground faster.

Batman painfully rose up from the ground after impact. He immediately noticed Coba's limp form next to him, but knew right away that she was neither dead nor unconscious- -just dazed from the fall and her loss of blood. He helped his weak rescuer into the Batmobile and buckled her into the front passenger seat before getting in himself and turning the vehicle on to autopilot. He pulled out two bunched up towels from the dashboard, holding the thickest one tightly to Coba's side and the thinner one to his chest. The Brooklyn groaned painfully as she weakly opened her eyes. "Bruce..." she gasped.

How does she know my name? Batman wondered. "I'm here, kid," he said reassuringly, disregarding his internal question. "You're going to be alright."

"Tim... no..." the girl murmured as if she did not hear him. "Two thugs... got away... Joker... bad, insane..."

"I know," Bruce said calmly. "I know how bad Joker is."

Coba shook her head. "No... you don't have... any idea... of what Joker will do... to Tim..." She suddenly fell unconscious.

"Kid!" Batman yelled, trying to wake her up as he did.

* * *

_**You cruel author! How **_**dare**_** you have us on the edge of our seats throughout the entire chapter and then abruptly end it?**_

**Because I can! Muwahahahahaha!**

**Err, good question. I like keeping myself on the edge of my seat as I write stories, and I also find that it keeps me interested in writing them. It's a bit of a blessing although you may find it annoying, don't you think? I have ****_also_**** noticed that the ****_Batman Beyond Unlimited_**** comic series keeps its readers on edge, so I guess I'm kinda carrying that torch with me.**

**There is also another character poll on my profile page. Why do I put up a bunch of polls on my profile having to do with the ****_Batgirl of the Future_**** series, you ask? Let's face it: the series is more popular than my other stories are (more reviews, more visitors, that sort of thing), ****_and_**** I like knowing what the series's fans think about the characters.**


	6. Chapter 5: Desperate Times

**Author's Notes:**

**Well, here's the fifth chapter. Please R&R and enjoy...**

* * *

**1999.**

"I believe our patient is waking up, Master Wayne," an older male's voice announced.

Coba groaned painfully as she slowly opened her eyes at the sound of the man's voice. She looked around at her surroundings, her blurry vision clearing with each passing moment. The familiar shadows of the Batcave greeted her, giving her the warm, welcoming sense of security she had always known in the place. She went to sit up, but the pain in her wounded side forced her to lay back down. Her right hand strayed to feel her wound- -but instead felt the bandage that covered it. Her eyes grew wide in surprise. "Huh?" she gasped. _It's not like Bruce to fix wounds located below my upper chest_, she recalled. _Why would he do it now?_ Realization struck her. _I'm still in the past. He was more confident back then about what to do with wounds. Of course, that was _also_ when Alfred was alive, and he knew more about that sort of thing._ Then she recalled something else: the voice she heard as she woke up. "Alfred Pennyworth," she murmured, shock still in her voice.

The butler looked at Coba in amazement. "How did you know my name, young lady?" he asked incredulously. "I don't recall meeting you before now."

"You're not the only one, Alfred," Bruce's younger self stated gravely. "She knows who I am- -_and_ who Tim is." He looked at the girl curiously. "How- -"

"- -do I know who you are?" Coba finished, much to the shock and awe of the two men. "I'm from the year 2040. I'd say more, but you shouldn't know too much about your own future. Well, except the terrible things that can be prevented. How long was I out?" she asked suddenly.

"Surprisingly for one who lost so much blood, only four hours," Alfred answered. "You're lucky to be alive, Miss..." He looked at Coba expectantly.

"Brooklyn," Coba answered. "Coba Brooklyn. And believe me: it's not the first time I've been lucky."

Pennyworth nodded knowingly. "I could tell that right away," he said. "There's an air of stubbornness about you- -_and_ a scar over your right eye," he added.

It was then Coba noticed that her mask was not covering her face. She managed to sit up in alarm, looking around for the mask. Batman handed the missing mask to the girl, a reassuring grin on his face. "You didn't think we'd throw it away, did you?" he asked curiously.

Coba grinned warmly at Wayne. "No," she simply replied, "it's just kinda hard to live without it in a strange place."

"I know what you mean, kid. Did you notice that your suit is still on you?"

"Yep. Thanks for not removing _that_," Coba said with a slight chuckle.

Bruce grinned bigger. "No problem."

"Batman?" a female voice called down the steps. "Are you down there?" Footsteps raced down the cement stairs, echoing throughout the cave, until their owner finally appeared at the bottom of the steps. She stared harshly at Bruce. "You really need to learn how to answer when you're called," she scowled.

"Batgirl," Coba murmured quietly. "Barbara Gordon- -when she was young and still a vigilante that is," she added with a grin.

Barbara noticed the future Batgirl and softened her gaze. "Who's she?" she asked curiously.

"A kid from the future," Batman answered. He turned his attention back to Coba. "Before you passed out earlier, you were saying something about what the Joker has in store for Robin. Do you know where they are so we can stop it?"

Brooklyn thought for a moment, then nodded with a frown. "Yeah, the old Arkham Asylum building," she answered grimly.

"When do we need to be there by?" Bruce inquired urgently.

"Joker will start torturing Tim tomorrow afternoon unless he is stopped by then."

"Why torture Tim?" Barbara asked. "What does Joker plan to gain from it?"

The future Batgirl's face fell even more. "He hopes to torture Tim to the point of insanity and keep him as his own son," she replied. "He wants a successor to his role of Joker."

The three older people were silent in shock for several moments. The silence was finally broken by the first Batgirl. "We gotta do something!" she exclaimed to Batman.

The Caped Crusader nodded solemnly. "I know," he gruffly said. "Let's get going!"

Coba was about to jump out of the bed she was sitting on, but her wounded side screamed in pain at the strain she put on it. Batman knew what the girl had planned to do. "You'd better stay here and rest up some more, Coba," he told her. "The field is not a good place for injured people to venture into."

Alfred chuckled a little. "Says the man with a bullet wound in his chest," he mused.

Barbara looked at Bruce in surprise. "You have a bullet wound?" she asked concernedly.

Bruce glared at Alfred as he flatly told Barbara, "It's nothing: it didn't hit anything serious. Let's go!"

~!~

**2040.**

Barbara smirked when she heard the younger Bruce's "reassuring" words. "Oh yeah, I remember that," she told the old Batman in amusement. "I also remember that you groaned painfully because of it during our trip to the asylum."

"I remember that, too," Bruce said glumly. "Don't you have any business you need to get to?"

The commissioner nodded gravely. "Yeah. Be sure to tell me if and when you hear from McGinnis," she reminded.

Bruce also nodded in affirmation. "Alright." He watched as his old friend left the cave. _Please let her be wrong about Terry_, he thought, _for mine, Terry's _and_ Coba's sakes._ The phone in the cave buzzed a moment later. Bruce, after heaving a relieved sigh that Barb was already out of earshot, answered the device. "Terry?" he said in his normal gruff voice.

"Wayne!" Terry's voice buzzed through the receiver, a mixture of relief and panic clearly evident. "The cops are after me and I don't know why!"

Although Bruce did not believe that what Gordon said about the boy was true, he knew that he still had to sound accusing to see if it really was true or not. "Did you honestly think that you could get away with killing Mad Stan?"

"Killing?!" Terry shrieked in surprise. "What are you talking about? All I did was hit him with my elbow!"

"Barbara told me that she saw otherwise," Bruce said bluntly. "She would never lie."

Wayne could tell McGinnis was getting more enraged with each passing split-second. "And_ I_ would?" he snapped.

The first Batman thought briefly about Terry's statement. _Strange to say or even think this about him, but he _does_ have a point_, he realized. "Where are you now?" he asked urgently.

"So you can turn me into the cops for something I didn't do?" Terry said irritably.

"Do you want me to help you or not?" Bruce snapped.

Terry sighed in defeat into the receiver. "Alright, I'm at Max's," he confessed.

"Stay there," Wayne ordered. He began typing some different words into the computer. "I'm going to find video footage to see what really happened. In the meantime, I recommend you lay low."

"Well, you're the expert," Terry said matter-of-factually, "so why would I _not_ listen to your recommendations—or Coba's?"

"True." Bruce swallowed hard. "Terry, there's something you need to know about your sister," he said grimly.

McGinnis was clearly terrified about his half-sibling's safety. "What do you mean?" he demanded to know. "Did she return last night? Is she alright?"

Bruce was usually rather tough in composure when it came to talking to the young Batman, but the knowledge of both men being afraid for Coba caused him to show more emotion. "She didn't return, but I know she's safe for the time being," the old man explained to Terry. "She's—uh—" He stopped himself, afraid of what might happen if he told Terry the full truth.

"Where is she?!" Terry yelled. "She's my sister, Bruce. I _need _to know!"

_He's right once again_, Bruce thought. He gave a sigh of defeat. "Alright," he gave in, "here's what's going on..."

~!~

**1999.**

Batman and Batgirl walked silently through the doorway and the empty halls of the old Asylum. "Keep your eyes open," Batman reminded his companion in an urgent whisper. "Joker could be up to anything in here."

"I know," Batgirl whispered back. "Just remember to practice what you preach, okay?"

Bruce shot Barb a Batglare. "What makes you think I _won't_ remember that?" he whispered irritably.

A large hammer suddenly swiped both Bats aside at once, immediately rendering them helpless. "Should've said 'will' instead of 'won't,' B-Man!" Harley Quinn's voice mocked.

Although Batgirl was already unconscious, Batman was barely awake enough to see the silhouette's of Quinn and another figure he was able to identify immediately. "Where's Robin, Joker?" he demanded to know, disregarding his failing senses.

"I wouldn't be worry about him if I were you, Batman," Joker said with an evil smirk. "He's safe- -until tomorrow night." He burst into a round of maniacal laughs as he finished his last sentence, clearly enjoying his triumph over Batman.

Batman's vision blackened slowly at first, then it suddenly faded all at once. He knew he was not dying, but he also knew that he would be senseless for a long time. _Way to go, Batman,_ he thought with irritation at himself, _you failed to practice what you preach. In doing that, you pitted yourself and Batgirl in the merciless hands of a psychopath._ His vision finally went black as he painfully closed his eyes.

~!~

_Weathered walls of cement towered above where Coba was standing. Sounds of evil laughter bounced off of the walls, freezing the blood in the girl's veins. _Joker_, she thought in terror. _He's around here somewhere. _Coba stalked her way through the hallways of the old Arkham Asylum—as she had recognized it to be so, although she had never seen it for herself before—with her eyes wide open for any signs of movement. "You're insane!" she could hear the young version of Barbara scream._

_"I know!" Joker's voice cackled uproariously. Brooklyn peered around the corner of a wall to see Batman and Batgirl each tied to a block as the villain continued. "I will first deal with the Bird-Boy," he announced, "then you two are next in line." He burst into another fit of laughter._

_The future Batgirl jumped out of her hiding place and charged at Joker, wrestling him to the ground as she did. "Not if I can help it!" she snarled defiantly._

_Joker grinned evilly at her before he flipped himself around, pinning Coba to the ground instead. His face slowly faded to reveal the face of Spellbinder. Coba let out a gasp of surprise. "You can't save the Bats or the Bird-Boy this time, Batrunt!" Spellbinder mocked, pulling out a pistol. "Then again, you can't even save yourself or the Batman you work with! My plan has worked: _I have succeeded in killing the future Batgirl and getting Batman arrested_!" He burst into the maniacal laughter of Joker as he placed the gun's barrel in Coba's mouth. "Time to end this," he murmured. He squeezed his finger around the trigger, letting out a single life-taking bullet._

_Symbols and faces flashed before Coba's dying eyes, two of them being unknown to her but also pausing longer for her to take notice of them: a man wearing a black suit with a large blue symbol across the chest; and a dangerous-looking woman wielding a sword. The only other figure to pause as long as the other two was that of Max Gibson. The face of Natalie Brooklyn—Coba's deceased mother—came to a stop after a minute of violent flashing. "You cannot do this alone, my little Coba," the woman said solemnly. "These people are the people you must find and get to help you before tomorrow night. Bruce will help with Max. Good luck, my child."_

Brooklyn woke up with a start seven hours after the original Batman and Batgirl had left to save Tim. She looked left and right anxiously, relieved to see that she was still safe in the Batcave but also rather disturbed that the two Bats had not yet returned. _Something's wrong_, she thought. _They should've been back by now. _It suddenly hit her: _My nightmare. It was saying that they're in trouble—_and_ it was telling me why Spellbinder sent me here._

"Are you alright, Miss Coba?" Alfred asked from behind.

Coba jumped in surprise at the sound of the butler's voice. "Uh, yeah," she answered unsteadily. "I'm just a bit troubled is all."

Alfred sat down next to her on the bed. "Does it have anything to do with that nightmare you had?" he asked curiously.

The girl nodded, almost surprised that Pennyworth had guessed correctly. "Uh-huh." She looked at him suddenly. "Do you know the whereabouts of Richard Grayson?" she asked.

"I happen to have his address," Alfred answered. He was suddenly alarmed by the tone of how Coba asked her question. "Why do you want to know?"

Batgirl looked honestly into the man's eyes. "I actually _need_ to know," she replied. "That nightmare I just had was telling me what I must do and what to be prepared for. It said that I have to find Grayson: the lives of Bruce, Barbara and Tim depend upon it." _Even mine_, she thought grimly.

Alfred nodded in understanding. "I'll take you there within an hour," he said solemnly.

Brooklyn grinned at him. "Thank you, Alfred," she said gratefully. "I'll be ready by then."

"You're not going to wear that suit, are you?" the man asked suspiciously.

"I have nothing else to wear," Coba confessed, frowning.

Pennyworth reached into a closet in the cave, then he pulled out a pair of black slacks and a plain red shirt. "They might be a bit too big," he said, shame in his voice, "but they're the closest fit we have for one of your stature. They used to be Master Dick's."

Coba politely took the clothes from Alfred before she pulled them effortlessly over her suit. She grinned at him once more. "They may be a bit big, but they cover my Batsuit too well for the naked eye to detect it. Thanks again."

"You're very welcome, Miss Coba," Alfred replied, returning the grin.

* * *

**That does it for this one!  
**

_**Aw, it's over **_**already**_**?**_

**Yes, yes it is, sorry.  
**

_**Why you little jerk!**_

**Keep talking to me like that and there won't _be_ another chapter!  
**

_**O.O Oh... I'll be quiet**** now.**_

**A wise decision, too!  
**

**Er, sorry about that. Any-who, please leave a review below: I love reading those! There is also a character poll on my profile page if you would like to express who your favorite character(s) is/are in the _Batgirl of the Future_ series.  
**


	7. Chapter 6: Desperate Measures (Updated)

**Author's Notes:**

**Okey-dokey, here's Chapter 6! Sorry this one took a while, too. Please R & R!**

* * *

**2040.**

"She's in the past?" Terry exclaimed. "You've gotta be kidding me!"

"Do I ever kid?" Bruce's voice asked, unamused.

Terry let out a sigh of despair. "No, but I'm having a tough time believing it."

"I had a tough time believing it as well," the old man confessed. "That is, until I started receiving memories of her saving Robin. On a different note, while I was telling you about Coba's problem, I pulled up the security video of what happened."

McGinnis grinned hopefully. "And?" he asked excitedly, giving a thumbs up to Max (who was sitting on a couch in the same room).

"It's signal broke up before I could get a glimpse of what happened," Wayne replied glumly.

"Oh," Terry said, greatly disappointed.

"Don't worry: I'm running a scan that will clear through the static. In the meantime, let's pay a visit to Mad Stan."

"On my way," Terry said. Even though he was against the idea of going out while the police were after him, he wanted more than anything to clear his name and end this nightmare once and for all.

Max looked at him in shock as her friend hung up the phone. "Are you crazy?" she asked, shock clearly audible in her voice. "You should be laying low!"

"That won't solve anything, Max," Terry explained. "This kind of problem needs to be dealt with, not to be hidden from. Coba would agree with me- -for once."

"Speaking of your sister, where is she?" Gibson inquired.

Terry quickly explained Coba's predicament to Max. He noticed her eyes light up when he mentioned the fact that he and Bruce did not know how to travel through time. "Stay out of this, Max," he said seriously. "This is more complicated than it sounds."

"For _you_, maybe," Max said with a grin. "But for one of the two only students who got a perfect score on the GTA's, it's more like a walk in the park."

"Even if that _is_ so, I don't want you anywhere near this. According to Bruce, Coba's in the middle of a mess, and I don't want you to be involved in it."

"Do you _want_ Coba to be stuck there for all eternity?" Max snapped. "Well, _I_ don't! Whether you like it or not, I'm _going_ to get into Coba's mess and help get her _out_ of it!"

The young Batman was about to argue with his pal even more, but he realized that it was no use trying to talk her out of it. "If and when you do it," he said sincerely, "be careful. Alright?"

Max nodded understandingly. "Alright. You be careful too."

Terry smiled at the girl. "Will do." He turned around and walked out of Max's apartment, praying that all would work out well for both of them.

Gibson waited no more than two seconds after Terry left before she set herself to work on her computer, looking up all of the research she could get about time-travel- -not caring if it was legal or otherwise. _I'll pay the price later if I must_, she thought ruefully. _But right now, I _must _help my friend. Who would've thought that I would have to save Coba Brooklyn, a younger and smarter genius than myself?_

~!~

**1999.**

Alfred dropped Coba off at Grayson's apartment at about nine o' clock in the morning. Surprisingly, Grayson was quick to answer the door and allowed her to enter after introducing herself cordially. The girl then urgently told him about Batman, Robin and Batgirl's predicament, and finally requested that he help her save them.

"No," was his blunt reply.

Coba looked at him curiously. "Why not? Bruce would do the same for you if it were the other way around!"

"Not a chance!" Dick shouted. "I have nothing left inside for that old man, and he has nothing left inside for me. He's on his own!"

"But he does _not_ have nothing left inside for you," Coba said calmly, although she could feel her blood begin to boil. "He's upset about the way things happened between you two."

"Upset at _me_ about it, you mean!" Nightwing snapped. "He pins everything that goes wrong on me! Besides, he only thinks about himself and Gotham City. He even took Barb from me!"

Brooklyn lost her cool for the third time in twenty-four hours. "That's not true!" she exploded. "You're forgetting about the time he took you in after your parents were killed, _and_ how he swore to look after you! As for him taking Barbara from you, it's false because _you're_ the one who left her behind when you left Gotham City after you two split up!"

Grayson was caught off guard by Coba's sudden rage, but his surprise was quickly replaced with anger. He pointed an enraged finger at the door. "Get. Out!" he ordered.

Although she did as she was bid, Coba was not yet finished. "It's just because I have a point, isn't it? You only want to get out of Batman's shadow and stay out of it, especially after an encounter with Joker resulted in a bullet near your spine and you losing your right eye. You're not thinking about the city itself or the people you care about- -Barbara, Alfred, Tim- -you're only thinking about your reputation sticking out from Bruce's. And guess what? It is now that you're completely ignoring those you care about during their time of need just to fill your own needs!" Hot tears of rage filled her eyes as she turned away from the first Robin. "And I thought you were one of the good guys," she muttered in disappointment. She walked out of the apartment and left the building, not once looking back.

Dick stood at the doorway as he watched Coba walk away from him. _Who does she think I am?_ he wondered angrily. _Does she seriously think I'm the same Richard Grayson as I was before: the one who takes orders from a rich man with a belt?_

Although he was not normally one to have speedy realizations, Grayson had one at the very next moment. _No, she didn't say anything like that. She thinks of me as a hero, one who puts others before myself. She came to me and asked if I could help her for a reason: she knows that she needs help from a hero to save Bruce and the others. _

A scream echoed through the city streets. _I don't think it's her, but something tells me she'll be there and need help in a minute. Time to see if I really _am_ a hero or not._ Nightwing quickly put on his black and blue suit and his black mask. He quickly launched a small grappling hook out of his suit's right arm before he swung himself out of the apartment.

~!~

Coba had also heard the scream. Thinking fast, she ducked into a dark alley, pulled off the red shirt and black pants to reveal her Batsuit, and pulled her mask over her head. She darted out of the alley and towards the sound of the shout. After a brief moment of running, she was greeted by the sight of two thugs backing a young boy who was just six years old into a dark alleyway. Batgirl charged at the two criminals, momentarily forgetting about her small size. The boy looked at Coba in surprise before the thugs each grabbed the warrior and swung her far back into the alley.

The little boy ran towards Coba in terror. "Are you okay?" he asked his attempting rescuer in concern.

Brooklyn nodded painfully. "Yeah, I'm fine." She stood up from where she landed as the two villains came at them once more. An idea popped into her head at that moment. "Get on my back," she murmured to the boy urgently.

The child immediately did as he was told, despite being nearly frozen with fear as the thugs came within two yards of them. Coba turned on her rocket launchers from her suit's feet, shooting both her and the boy towards the top of the back alley wall. One of the thugs, however, threw a rope around Coba's legs as she ascended. Upon feeling the rope, Coba threw the boy onto the top of the roof. The boy watched in terror as his rescuer was being pulled back towards the villains.

"Get out of here!" Coba shouted urgently.

"But what about you?" the rescuee inquired.

"Don't worry about me! Go, _now_!"

The boy blinked back fearful tears as he turned away from the ledge.

The thugs yanked Coba roughly towards them, causing her to hit the ground and turn off her suit's launchers. "Hey, Hal!" one evilly said to his bigger partner. "This is the Bat that got our buddies killed!"

Hal tightly bound Coba's wrists behind her back with the rest of the long rope. "Yeah, I noticed," he snarled. "She also took away our fun just now."

"You call scaring children_ fun_?" Coba snarled.

"I wasn't talking to you, you annoying little cur!" Hal snapped.

"You didn't say you weren't, eith- -hmph!"

The other thug nodded to his partner knowingly as he tied a gag around the future Batgirl's mouth. "You've got 'annoying' right: she talks too much! Well, since we can't have fun with that one kid and since we want this one dead, how about we have some fun with her while we kill her?"

Coba was terrified when Hal gave the plan a nod of approval, but she managed to hide her fear- -until she found that the ropes binding her were too tight to allow her to get any batarangs from her wrists. The largest thug grinned satisfactorily at the sight of the girl's discomfort before he grabbed a crowbar from a nearby dumpster and repeatedly hit her with it forcefully. "Not so tough now, are ya runt?" he taunted.

"Yeah!" the other thug cackled, kicking the girl in her back. "You're nothing but dirt!" He threw Coba against the nearest wall, overjoyed when he heard her let out a loud yet muffled scream of pain. "Who's here to save you this time?"

"I am."

Captors and captive alike looked at the front of the alleyway in surprise to see Nightwing standing there. He glared at Hal and his companion. "Let her go," he growled dangerously.

"Why should we?" Hal snarled. "You're not in charge of us!"

Nightwing grinned malignantly. "Because I know who _is_ in charge of you," he said in a way that made the thugs shudder, "_and_ that he wants to deal with you personally if he gets a hold of you. If you don't want me to go get him so he can deal with you, I suggest you let the girl go."

There was an uncomfortable silence that hung over the thugs and their prisoner. The two villains looked at each other, then Nightwing, then Coba, than back at each other. They passed a secret, malignant wink. "Yes, sir," Hal said at last. "We'll let her go."

Hal pulled out a knife and knelt next to where Coba lay as if to cut her loose, then suddenly threw it at Nightwing's chest. The hero dodged the blade just in time before charging headlong at the thugs. He swiftly tripped Hal and punched the other criminal below the jaw. He placed himself protectively in front of the small prisoner as the villains stood up again. Instead of charging at Nightwing, however, they turned around and ran out of the alley, now knowing that it was absolutely impossible for them to fight and beat the tough vigilante.

Grayson knelt down next to Coba concernedly, noticing that she was almost paralyzed with shock. "Are you alright, kid?" he asked calmly as he removed the gag from her mouth.

Brooklyn looked at her savior gratefully, although terror and pain were still plainly visible in her eyes. "Yeah," she answered in a shaky voice. She coughed painfully, causing blood to enter her mouth. Immediately disgusted with the foul taste, she spat out the bloody sputum before continuing. "I'm just a bit shaken. I'll be fine in a little while, though- -look out!" she suddenly shouted urgently.

Dick turned around just in time to notice Hal and his partner each aim their guns at the two heroes: Hal at Dick, his partner at Coba. Nightwing quickly shot two batarangs from his wrists, hitting the guns out of the villains' hands. The two villains turned to run, but one was immediately slain by a single sword. The remaining thug, none other than Hal, fled into the streets. "Oh no," the young man muttered. "Not _her_... not_ now_!"

The owner of the deadly blade walked coolly towards the warriors. Coba watched in horrified fascination as the sword-wielder suddenly jumped alongside of the walls, easily getting past Nightwing. The dangerous woman lifted their sword's point at Coba's chest, causing the girl to let out a small gasp of alarm. "A bit nervous for a Bat, aren't you?" the woman mocked in an accent Coba detected to be a cross between Arabic and Asian. "Can't say that I blame you, though."

"Leave her alone, Talia!" Nightwing barked, ready to lunge himself at the woman. "She hasn't done anything to you!"

Talia al Ghul suppressed a smile at the first Boy Wonder. "You're right, she hasn't done anything _to_ me," she said with a twist of venom in her voice. "But she _has_ done something _for_ me."

The future Batgirl looked at Talia in confusion. "What do you mean?" she asked.

Before either of the two Batfamily members could react, Talia flicked her blade across Brooklyn's chest. Coba flinched in surprise at first, but then realized that she was not bleeding or hurting anywhere. Her arms dangled freely to her sides. Coba looked at the cement ground and noticed her severed ropes laying there. She looked back up at Talia in surprise and managed to gasp out, "Huh?"

Al Ghul grinned benignly at the confused girl. "You saved my son." She turned her head to face the opening of the alleyway. "Damian!" she called.

The small boy Coba had rescued just minutes before ran towards them. "Coming, Mother!" he called back.

Coba's eyes grew wider. "Damian Wayne?" she said in a shocked voice.

It was Talia's turn to be surprised. "How did you know that?" she asked in a demanding tone.

Nightwing sided with Talia. "I'd like to know that, too," he said gruffly. "You seem to know Batman better than I do, and none of us have ever seen you before. What's going on that we don't know about?"

Knowing that it would be useless to ask the two older and more experienced people to help her if she kept her secret from them, Coba decided to tell them the truth. "Alright, you both deserve to know the truth," she said solemnly. "I'm from the year 2040. I know a lot about Batman because Bruce Wayne took me in after my father was murdered."

"And he allowed you to become Batgirl?" Dick asked in suspicion.

"_And _allowed my half-brother to take on the mantle of Batman," Brooklyn answered. "But there's something else you need to know about. It has to do with a nightmare I had last night."

"We are not _psychiatrists_!" Talia snapped. "We do not need to hear about others' dreams."

"Hold on, Talia," Grayson said sharply. "Earlier she was telling me about Bruce, Batgirl and Robin being held captive by the Joker and Harley Quinn. The nightmare she had must have something to do with it. We have to listen to her if we are to save them."

"There is no _we_!" al Ghul spat. "I refuse to help!"

"Don't you want the father of your son to live?" Grayson snapped.

Talia said nothing, but her facial features gave away her large amount of concern for Batman's safety.

Dick nodded knowingly. "That's what I thought." He looked at Coba, who was surprised that he had stood up for her after the fight they had minutes before. "So," he said in a much calmer tone, "tell us about this nightmare you had..."

* * *

**Author's Notes:**

_**You're ending it **_**again_? Why do you never cease to torture us?_**

**Hey, at least I didn't end it in the middle of some kind of fight like I usually do!**

_**True...**_

**Anyways, I'm sorry that it took a while to post this one, _and_ that I went out of character with Nightwing, Talia and Damian (as I'm not as familiar with either of them as you may be). Some advice on how they usually speak and behave would be very appreciated and helpful. As for my edit with Coba and Dick's argument about Dick losing his right eye and having a bullet near his spine, it is mentioned in the comics that these things did happen to him when he and Bruce had took on Joker days before Joker had kidnapped Tim Drake.**

**Please leave a review in the box below. If you do not have a FanFiction account, you can always leave a guest review. See you next chapter!**


	8. Chapter 7: Assembly of Plans

**Author's Notes:**

**Here's Chapter 7, woot-woot! As I usually say before the chapter begins, though, please R & R!**

* * *

**1999.**

Nightwing, Talia and Damian looked at the future Batgirl in amazement as she finished explaining the events of the nightmare she had witnessed the previous night. "So, you're saying that this nightmare of yours will come true unless we help you?" Talia asked as if needing clarification.

"Yep," Coba replied with an affirming nod.

"How do you know if it will either way?" Dick asked curiously. "I mean, have you ever had any like this before?"

Coba frowned. "I can only remember one, and it occurred about two months before I wound up here. It came true- -well, for the most part. My brother was the original target for the things that happened in it, and I took his place, losing my memory in the process."

"How do you even remember _that_, then?" Dick inquired, a small yet noticeable hint of suspicion in his voice.

"Everything has been coming back to me slowly," Brooklyn explained. "The memories of my parents' deaths are still blurry, though, as well as my memories of _them_." Tears of shame and sorrow filled her eyes. "I-I don't fully remember what they were like."

Grayson's eyes narrowed sadly as he gently placed a reassuring hand on the girl's shoulder, being careful not to hurt her since her whole body was still hurting from being savagely beaten by the thugs. "I know it's hard, Coba," he said solemnly. "I've been there before." He paused, suddenly realizing something. "There is one person in particular who comes to my mind who was also in that situation before, and was also the most like a father to me after my parents died."

"You mean Bruce Wayne?" Coba choked.

"Yeah. Hard to believe?"

"No. He's like a father to me, too."

"Excuse me for interrupting," al Ghul intervened, "but standing here talking about Bruce is _not_ going to help him."

"As much as I'd hate to agree with you, you're absolutely right," Grayson agreed. He looked at Coba once more. "You said they're at the old Arkham Asylum, right?"

"Correct," Batgirl repied.

"Can I come too?" Damian pleaded. "I wanna help!"

Talia shook her head at her young son. "No," she said flatly. "I want you to go home and wait there until I get back."

"But I can help!" Damian protested.

"The answer is _no_, Damian!" al Ghul snapped. "Go home, now!"

The young boy fought back angry tears before doing as he was bid. Grayson looked at Talia in disgust. "That was a little harsh if you ask me."

The woman shot a dark glare at the man. "I didn't ask you, now did I?" she snapped.

Nightwing shook his head despairingly. "No, no you didn't. Let's get going."

Coba followed her older companions out of the alleyway, since she did not know the way to the asylum. She stopped and glanced in the direction Damian Wayne had ran in. _Something tells me he's not going to listen to his mother_, she thought grimly.

She looked back towards Grayson and Talia, picking up her pace to catch back up with them as she did. None of them spoke for a few minutes, although their own thoughts filled their minds. _I was rather hard on Nightwing earlier_, Coba thought regretfully. _I haven't apologized for it. I haven't thanked him for saving my life, either._ She remembered something. _My mother said Bruce would take care of Max. Does she mean Max needs help from Bruce, or does she mean Bruce will help Max help me?_

_This is rather interesting_, Talia mused. _I'm helping the former partner of Bruce _and_ a future partner of his to save him. My father would have my head if he found out about this._

_Some day this is turning out to be, Dick_, Grayson thought. _You have an argument with a future girl, save her a few minutes later, and then team up with her and the daughter of Ra's al Ghul. How much stranger can things get?_

"Nightwing?" Coba said solemnly, breaking the silence.

The older vigilante looked at the young girl seriously, but not without patience. "What is it, Coba?" he asked.

"I wanted to apologize for my behavior earlier," Coba replied apologetically. "I was out of line to say those things." She paused nervously. "I-I also wanted to say..." She paused once more. _Why is this so hard for me to say? _"Thank you," she said at last, "for saving my life."

"You're welcome, kid," Dick said gently, sensing Coba's discomfort. "I accept your apology, too, although I honestly feel that I deserved to be yelled at like that."

Talia looked at Grayson in surprise. "I never thought I'd hear you say _that_ to anyone before," she stated in amusement.

Even though he had little respect for the assassin, Dick could not help but grin at her smugly. "Well, _now_ you have," he said with a slight chuckle.

Coba also grinned, now relaxed after hearing Nightwing's calm responses to her and Talia. "Glad to see you two are getting along for the most part," she stated in a happy tone. She became serious once more, her grin becoming a frown. "Does anyone have a plan?"

Dick's smile faded immediately. "I don't," he confessed. "Talia?"

"No," al Ghul said regretfully. "At least, not one either of you will agree with."

The small girl's masked face seemed to light up. "I've got one. Although we may not all agree on it, it's the best chance we've got that doesn't involve killing."

"I already disagree with the 'no killing' rule, but I will adapt to the best of my abilities," Talia stated. "What's the plan, Coba?"

~!~

**2040.**

Max sat in her room, typing vigorously away at the keyboard of her laptop. She had been at it for almost an hour now, finding only small details about time travel and none big enough for her to care to keep track of. "There's gotta be a website that I'm forgetting to check out," she muttered. "I could've sworn I've checked out all of them- -wait a second!" She typed a web address into the tool bar. "I haven't checked out the most possible one for this sort of thing."

An advancedly designed webpage came up on the computer screen. Gibson grinned at the sense of acheivement she felt. The hour of fierce laboring over the technology finally payed off. "_Now_ I'm on to something..." she said happily. _Hang in there, Coba. I'll get you out of there soon._

~!~

**1999.**

Batman slowly opened his eyes, groaning painfully as he did. He could have sworn that he could feel his head splitting open. He glanced around the room, immediately snapping fully awake at the horrific sight: Batgirl's unconscious form was strapped down on an operation-bed table next to him, realizing then that he was in the same predicament; Robin too was strapped to a similar table, but he was struggling wildly in his bonds; and Joker, dressed in a chefs hat and an apron that had the words "Kiss the Cook" printed upon it, was standing next to a black barbecue. _I doubt he's using it to grill steaks or hot dogs_, Batman thought grimly.

Batgirl stirred awake, clearly in as much agony as Bruce was- -if not more. "B-Batman?" she murmured painfully. "Where are we?"

The Dark Knight was pleased to see that his companion was alive, but kept a serious air about him as he knew he should. "The asylum," he murmured back. "And it seems as though _we're _the patients."

"Perfect," Batgirl angrily muttered. "Just my idea of a good vacation."

"Puddin'," the high-pitched voice of Harley Quinn called out excitedly, "the Bats are awake!"

Joker gleefully looked over from where he was standing. "Oh, good!" he said gleefully. "Just in time to see my secret plan unfold." He lifted the lid of the barbeque open, lifting out a pair of metal clamps. He opened and shut them, allowing sparks of electricity to shoot out from the inside. Snickering maniacally, the psychotic man stalked over to where Robin was strapped down.

Robin struggled harder in his restraints as Joker grew closer. "Batman!" he shouted in terror. Although he was normally too proud to call for his teacher to help him, the boy was too scared to care whether or not he was tough in everyone else's eyes.

"Leave him alone!" Batman shouted angrily, noticing his ally's unusual discomfort.

Batgirl also noticed Tim's fear- -and remembered right away what Coba said the villain would do to him. "You're insane!" she shouted at Joker.

Joker looked at Batgirl and laughed. "I know!" He cackled uproariously. "I will first deal with the Bird-Boy," he announced, "then _you two _are next in line!" He burst into another fit of maniacal laughter.

Before any of the captors and captives could blink, two batarangs shot through the air, each cutting a cord to each of the two clamps. A dark, masked figure jumped down from a high-beam after switching off their invisibility and wrestled Joker to the ground. "Not if I can help it!" the figure's voice snarled defiantly.

Harley instinctively rushed at the intruder, but was also slammed to the ground by two others. "I wouldn't do that if I were you," a woman's voice snarled venomously.

"Remember, Talia," the woman's companion reminded her, "no killing."

"I get it, Nightwing!" Talia snapped. "Don't you have something important to do?"

Nightwing nodded before he got up from where he and Talia had pinned down Harley. He sprinted over to the area where Batman, Batgirl and Robin were bound. "How are you damsels in distress holding up?" he could not help but mock.

Batman was never one for humor, but he decided to let it slide this once. He grinned with relief at Nightwing. "With straps," he said simply. "Good to see you again, Nightwing- -behind you!" he warned, his smile having quickly evaporated.

Grayson turned in time to see Hal throw a punch at his head. The vigilante quickly blocked it and returned the blow to the man's jaw. Grayson drew out a batarang before swiping it across one of Batman's wrist restraints, cutting the wrist free from the strap. The young man handed his former teacher the weapon as Hal charged at him once more. "Free yourself and the others!" he ordered. "Don't try to argue, either!"

"Wasn't going to," Bruce said sagely, cutting one of the three other straps holding him.

The Clown Prince of Crime was still clearly surprised by the first intruder. "How many times do I have to kill you, Batrunt?" he growled.

Coba glared dangerously at Joker. "How many times do you have to call me _Batrunt_, Clowny?" she shot back. She stood up angrily from where she had landed. "No matter. Get up! I'd like to see if you can truly kill me _this_ time."

Joker glared back at the girl as he stood up, although his stare seemed rather weak compared to the ferocity of his adversary's. "With pleasure," he sneered. He clenched his hand into a fist, pulled it back, and then swung it at Coba's face.

* * *

**Author's Notes:**

_**You ended on a suspenseful note **_**again**_**!**_

**Yeah, so? I already explained a few chapters ago why I do that.**

_**Oh yeah...**_

**Don't mind me, just having a small argument with myself :P. Any-who, please leave a review in the box below whether you're a member of FanFiction or a guest: you don't have to, but your reviews are greatly appreciated!**


	9. Chapter 8: Arkham Asylum

**Author's Notes:**

**This is it, people! A chapter you may have been waiting for: Coba's official fight with the Joker! Please R & R!**

* * *

**1999.**

Coba immediately dodged Joker's fist, returning the blow to the man's jaw as she did. Joker stumbled backward in surprise, but recovered in an instant. He lunged at Coba again, only to have her knee him powerfully between his legs. The man let out a grunt of pain before Coba tossed him to the side. He grinned competitively at the girl as he wiped away the blood from his lower lip and stood back up. "Not bad, Batrunt," he said with a sneer. "Not bad at all. For a scrawny little thing you pack quite a punch!"

The future Batgirl returned the grin with another fierce Batglare. "Now that you see what I'm capable of, show me what _you're_ able to do besides crack lame and sadistic jokes!" she challenged.

Joker's smile immediately evaporated at Coba's insult. He charged at her once more with a snarl. "Why you little- -oof!"

Brooklyn had elbowed her opponent in the stomach. "Quit pointing out my size!" she snapped. "I'm fully aware of how small I am!"

Talia allowed Harley to stand back up. "It's just you and me, Quinn," Talia snarled.

Harley grinned dangerously at the assassin. "I've always dreamed of this, al Ghul!" she said sarcastically.

"You're serious, aren't you?" Talia asked, a bit taken aback by Harley's words.

"No." Harley's response was aided by a bigger grin and a small twist of poison in her voice.

Quinn threw a punch at Talia's face. Al Ghul quickly dodged it before swiftly kicking her enemy between the ribs, knocking the air out of Harley's lungs and immediately making her unable to fight any longer. Talia tightly bound Harley against a pillar with a rope. "Now _that_ was pathetic," Talia mocked the other woman, shooting a sedative into her veins. "I've seen mice put up better fights against cats!"

Nightwing jumped to the side as Hal threw a forceful punch at him. The vigilante skillfully tripped the thug before pinning him to the ground and punching him three times in the face. Hal spat out a few bloody teeth before smiling evilly. "Is that all you've got, Birdbrain?" he mocked. "I certainly hope not."

Dick could sense the villain knew something he did not. "What makes you say that?" he asked suspiciously.

Hal gave a sharp whistle. Not even Batman had the time to blink- -let alone free Robin after freeing Batgirl- -before a score of thugs rushed towards the five vigilantes and the assassin. Three thugs lifted Nightwing off of Hal. Hal stood up and punched Nightwing in the mouth. "Did you honestly think that I was the last one my boss led?" he jeered. "I was his right hand man and to be appointed to be leader if he was to be killed or arrested." He turned to his other followers. "Get the other Bats!" he ordered.

The seventeen other villains advanced upon Batman, Talia, Robin and the first Batgirl. Although they were vastly outnumbered, Talia and the three Bats fought bravely. Nightwing managed to wriggle free of his captors' grasps and joined his companions.

Coba and Joker were too caught up in their own fight to notice what was going on. Coba spun around on her left heel with her right leg up to kick Joker with. Unfortunately, Joker grabbed Coba's leg in mid air and powerfully slammed her to the ground. Brooklyn felt the air rush out of her lungs upon impact with the cement floor. The psychotic villain pinned her down to make sure she did not get back up and pulled out a pistol. It was then that he noticed what the other Bats were dealing with. He smiled wickedly. "Would you look at that, Batrunt!" he said evilly. "It looks like Hal decided to step up the game a bit. It's about time, too!"

The girl glanced in the direction of her companions, immediately shocked to see that they were already overpowered. _This isn't good_, she thought grimly. She looked back at Joker angrily. "Call them off, now!" she growled. "I mean it, Jo- -!" She stopped when she felt the barrel of the pistol being quckly shoved into her mouth.

"Or what?" Joker snickered. "What can you do right now? You're pinned down with a gun in your pie-hole! Besides, I can't control Hal's men: they work for _him_, not _me_!" He burst into a round of maniacal laughter as he prepared to pull the trigger.

~!~

**2040.**

Max marvelled at her finished time-travel device. _Time to test it out_, she thought. _What time should I set it to, though?_ It suddenly dawned on her. _I should get a hold of Bruce. He'll know when and where Coba is._ She picked up her phone and punched in a few numbers. _He'd better answer_, she hoped.

A deep and gruff voice answered the other line. "Wayne."

"Hi, Mr. Wayne, it's Max," Gibson greeted. "I have a quick question."

"I don't have time for any questions, Max," Bruce growled. "I have to be available for when Terry calls. Get off the phone, now!"

"Do you want Coba to be stuck in the past forever?" Max snapped.

There was a brief silence on the other end. "No, I don't," the old man replied sadly.

"Something happens to her back there, doesn't it?" Max inquired, sensing Bruce's discomfort.

"Yeah," he answered. "She gets killed by Joker."

Max felt the air get caught in her throat. _No_, she thought despairingly. "What year, date and time does that happen?" she asked concernedly.

"You're not thinking of going back there, are you?"

"I'll have to test my machine out first," Max explained. "Now answer my question, _please_."

"Alright," Bruce sighed. "August 12, 1999 at 5:31 PM. It happened at the old Arkham Asylum."

"Thanks," the pink-haired girl said gratefully. She set the machine for the time (though she set it to 5:30 PM) and location Bruce had just given her before grabbing a hot pink high-heeled shoe. A portal opened up in front of the antinae of the time machine. Max quickly threw, none too gently, the shoe into it. "Let's hope it works," she muttered.

~!~

**1999.**

Joker let out a grunt of pain and fell off of Coba in an unconscious heap, releasing the gun as he did. She pulled the pistol out of her mouth before she tore the chamber apart from the gun. The thugs and their opponents stopped what they were doing to see the future Batgirl's outstanding feat. All of the villains' eyes were filled with horror as she glared dangerously at them. "Retreat!" Hal barked.

"But boss," one of the man's followers protested. "We can take her down easy!"

"You haven't even taken down these five!" Hal snapped. "Let's go, now!"

All twenty thugs immediately did as their leader commanded, only to have five of them- -six including Hal- -get caught by their foes' batarang-bolas hybrids.

It was then that the heroes heard a young voice fearfully shout, "Mother!"

~!~

**2040.**

There was a knock at Max's apartment door. "Who's there?" she called.

"Delivery for a Maxine Gibson!" a gruff voice answered.

Max opened the door, surprised to see Bruce standing there. "Mr. Wayne!" she gasped. "What- -?"

"- -am I doing here?" Wayne finished. "Your machine works. I came to drop off the shoe that knocked Joker unconscious."

Gibson raised an eyebrow. "This old uncomfortable thing did _what_?"

Bruce managed a small grin. "Knocked out Joker before he could kill Coba," he answered solemnly. "Are we going to go back and save Coba or what?"

"We?"

"Yes, we. I'm the one who needs to watch over Coba, remember?"

"I remember, but what about Terry?" Max inquired. "He's being chased by the police still, isn't he?"

"He'll manage on his own until we get back. Let's go, now!"

~!~

**1999.**

The blood froze in Talia's veins as the thugs came back, one of them holding the struggling son of al Ghul. _Damian!_ she thought despairingly. Talia instinctively rushed towards her son's captors, her sword out and ready. Unfortunately, the thugs were ready for such a response. Damian yelped in terror as the man holding him pulled a gun to his head. "One more false move and the boy dies!" he threatened.

Talia and the Batfamily members froze at the sound of those words. They could all tell the thug was not bluffing. Batman stepped forward solemnly. "What do you want us to do?" he asked.

"Release our leader and our brethren," the villain replied. "If you do, we'll let the boy live."

Batman knelt down next to the imprisoned thugs. Pulling out a batarang, he sliced through the ropes. The villains got up in a panicked rush. "Alright," Batman said gruffly. "Let him go."

Unbeknownst to the onlookers, Hal had passed a secret wink to the man holding Damian. "I only said I'd let him live," the thug said slyly. "I didn't say anything about releasing him." The villains turned to run with Damian still in their clutches.

The boy's captor suddenly fell backward in an unconscious heap. To the surprise of the heroes and villains alike, Coba's image quickly appeared in a fade from the space directly left to where the man fell. Damian scrambled to his feet before dashing to his mother's side as the thugs' leader lunged at Coba. The small girl jumped to the side and powerfully swung her right fist into the right side of her foe's face.

Hal backed away from the future Batgirl in surprise, suddenly undeniably afraid of her as the rest of his followers were. "Retreat!" his voice bellowed out as he ran out of the Asylum.

This time none of the other thugs argued with their leader's decision. They followed Hal's fleeing form frantically. "Wait for us, boss!"

None of the heroes noticed Joker come to his senses, nor did they see him pick up the gun and aim it at the future Batgirl. "Game over, Batrunt!" he shouted, squeezing the trigger.

Nightwing, Coba and Robin were the first to react. The smallest of the three vigilantes somersaulted out of the bullet''s range as it whizzed past where she stood a split second before. Nightwing tossed a batarang at the villain's gun, knocking it out of his hand. Tim slammed Joker's head to the ground forcefully enough to render him helpless, but not hard enough to give him a concussion. The Boy Wonder cuffed the Clown Prince of Crime's hands behind him.

"I remember that," a gruff voice stated in amusement from behind Tim, causing the boy to jump in surprise. "I also remember thinking 'Maybe Tim or Dick should be the next Batman.'" The owner of the voice stepped out from the shadows, another figure standing behind him.

Batman looked at the newcomer in surprise. "You were thinking the same thing _I'm_ thinking right now!" he cried. "How do you know this?"

The person grinned. "Let's just say that we're somewhat alike."

Coba had immediately recognized the newcomer's voice. "Wayne, Max!" she cried out in relief.

Max's eyes lit up at the sound of her friend's voice. "Coba!" she called. "You're okay!"

Robin looked at the older version of his teacher with a big grin. "It seems you haven't lost your touch after all those years," he noted. "The element of surprise is still on your side."

"Surprise can also be a foe of mine," Bruce said with a small grin.

"Guys, he's smiling!" Tim exclaimed.

Grayson, Talia and Barbara were also surprised. "Holy cow, he _is_!" Dick exclaimed.

The younger Bruce was rather confused. "How the heck did I get to feel happy in the future?"

"Four syllables for ya," Max stated: "Coba Brooklyn. And no," she added, noticing the disgusted look on his face, "not like that."

"Then how?"

"My father refers to you as a detective," said al Ghul matter-of-factually. "You can get it figured out- -and you can help me raise our son."

"_Our_ son?" Batman exclaimed. "Since when did I have a son with you?"

Bruce's older self turned to Max and Coba. "We'd better leave while Batman gets some things sorted out," he said. He noticed Coba looking at the ground sadly. "You'll see them all again," he promised. "You can talk to them about this event in the future."

Coba nodded sagely. "Okay, Bruce." She quickly waved an emotional farewell to the six people before Max flicked the switch to the time machine. The three companions from the future disappeared from sight, almost as if they were ghosts.

* * *

**Author's Notes:**

**Well, that's the last chapter of the story that takes place in 1999. I hope you guys liked the part where Max threw the shoe through the portal: I came up with it and just had to "throw" that part in :P. Please leave your review in the box below and stay tuned for the next chapter!**


	10. Chapter 9: Back in 2040

**Author's Notes:**

**Sorry it took a while to post this one: I've been pretty busy with school and other stuff (including my Lion King story). Please read and review...**

* * *

**2040.**

"Is this the Batcave?" Max asked in awe.

Bruce and Coba nodded. "Yep," the young girl answered.

"So _that's_ the computer you guys use to collect data," Max noted the large computer. "I always thought it would be the size of a widescreen."

"It _is_ the size of a widescreen," Bruce stated bluntly, "an old theater's widescreen, that is."

"Not what I meant," Max said irritably.

"He knows you mean a widescreen television," Coba reassured her friend. "He's just messing with you." She looked at Bruce. "How was Terry holding up before you- -"

"- -came and got you? The cops were on his tail, but he'll get away. That's a perk that comes with being Batman: you're an escape artist."

Coba was silent for a moment, thinking it over. Her eyes suddenly went wide with horror. "No, he _won't_ get away," she said in a terrified voice. "Spellbinder's going to send him and Barbara back in time!" She became dead serious right then. "Bruce, check that security footage from the hotel. I'll go help Terry!" Without waiting for a response, Coba dashed out of the cave, despite her crippled feet being sore from running around Gotham all day.

"Be careful, Coba!" Wayne shouted after her. "The law's not on our side this time!"

"I will!" Coba called back. The clock entrance could be heard skidding back into place.

Max's face creased with worry. _I hope this'll all work out_, she thought grimly.

~!~

Terry stood on the roof of the old Majestic Theater, hiding behind the sign as bullets bounced off of the building's walls. _This is not good_, he thought. _Where's Wayne when you need him?_

"McGinnis, come in!"

"Wayne!" Terry murmured gruffly. "Where have you been?"

"I'll explain later," Bruce replied urgently. "Turn on your high-frequency scanner."

"Why?"

"Because I know who's behind all this, and I'll bet he's there right now, hiding behind an illusion."

Knowing it would be best if he did as his teacher ordered instead of pressing him to say who the enemy was, McGinnis turned on his visor's high-frequency scanner and glanced around at the audience below. The perpetrator faded into view, directly behind Commissioner Gordon. "Spellbinder," Terry snarled. A figure also faded into view, sneaking behind Spellbinder as it did. He gasped in shock when he realized who it was. "Coba!" he murmured.

There was a bright white flash and the sound of shattering glass. Barb and her partners stopped firing in surprise and finally saw Billings standing there, his glass ball shattered in his hand. The wicked man raised the ball's shards above his head, ready to strike the commissioner, but was immediately tackled from behind by something he could not see. Coba turned off her invisibility, a sly and mocking grin on her face. "Annoying when you can't see your enemy, isn't it?" she jeered.

Spellbinder threw Coba off of him and stood up. "I thought I sent you into the past to be killed!" he growled.

"Guess what, dreg: I came back," Coba growled back. "Let's skip the 'welcome home celebration' to why you have been doing this, shall we?"

"I'll kill you if you do," Billings threatened in a low voice.

Coba seemed to not hear. "You knew that the commissioner was ready to believe that Batman would kill. Only, you knew he wouldn't, so you decided to come up with a plan to frame him for the murder of Mad Stan. Stan's not dead though, is he?" She waited for Ira to say or do something, but the villain remained silent. "That's obviously a 'yes, he's not dead,'" Coba continued. "But your 'framing Batman' plan needed a little help, especially since Batman has partners. You needed to come up with a way to get rid of whatever partner tagged along with him so they wouldn't be alibis. You did some research on time-travel, and implanted a device in your ball that, when flashed, would send the viewer back in time to a specific time that you knew they would not survive. And right now, you were going to send the commissioner and Batman to the time I was trapped in: when Joker was still running rampant in the streets of Gotham. Then you would have been able to run around over here to collect money without worrying about the shadow of a Bat or police officer to foil your plans."

Spellbinder threw himself at Batgirl with a snarl, only for her to swiftly step aside. The man fell to the ground with a hard thud. Coba planted her right foot sturdily on her enemy's back, not allowing him to stand back up, as she cuffed his hands behind his back. "You're dead when I get out of prison, runt," Spellbinder snarled.

"I don't think you're getting out this time," Brooklyn muttered darkly. "And by the way, my name's not runt: it's _Batgirl_."

Batman glided down to where his sister stood. He helped her to lift Spellbinder up to his feet and to walk him to a nearby police vehicle, allowing the officers next to it to place the villain in the car. Barbara walked up to the two Bats solemnly. "Sorry, kid," she apologized to Terry. "I really messed up."

Terry grinned. "I've been there," he stated reassuringly.

Barb knew that the young Dark Knight was accepting her apology when he said that- -and that everyone makes mistakes. She looked at Coba gratefully, though still speaking to Terry. "I guess we both need to thank your sister for arriving when she did," she said. "If she's right about what Spellbinder had planned to do- -"

"- -which she is- -" a different voice cut in.

"- -we'd _both_ be facing the Joker right now," Gordon finished. "Wayne," she said gruffly to the other voice, which was coming from her headset, "you're not authorized to use this signal. Get off of it!"

"Alright," Bruce said, a slight chuckle in his voice. "I just wanted to see how you would react." He hung up.

The woman shook her head, a large smile plastered on her face. "We should also thank her for giving Bruce a sense of humor," she added.

The three companions all had to laugh at that. "Yeah, I have to agree with you about that," Terry chuckled.

"I don't need to be thanked," Coba said modestly. "I only did what I had to."

"Who said you had to?" Barb inquired. "You did what you did because you wanted to. Don't try to deny it either."

Coba smiled. "Alright, I won't."

Gordon watched as the two siblings flew away. _I'm glad Terry didn't kill Stan_, she thought gratefully. _The idea of a Batman being willing to kill another man sickens me. I'm also glad Coba's here instead of back during the time Joker was still alive._ _I could tell she had a tough time breathing on those filthy streets, anyway._

~!~

"You okay, Coba?" Terry asked once he and his half-sister were back in the Batcave, both of them removing their masks. "You've been freakishly quiet the whole way over here."

Coba looked up at her brother reassuringly, although it was obvious that she was feeling rather perturbed about something. "Yeah, I'm alright," she replied. "I was just in deep thought about a few things, that's all."

Max and Bruce looked at Brooklyn concernedly. "Does some of it have to do with the past?" Max asked.

"Uh-huh."

"That you left without thanking everyone for helping you?" Bruce asked.

"Yeah." Coba fought back guilty tears. "Dick saved me from Hal; Talia reluctantly agreed to not kill and succeeded; you and Alfred worked hard to keep me from bleeding to death; and although I got into a verbal fight with Tim, he defended me when the thugs tried to kill me and take him to Joker. I didn't get to thank anyone except Alfred and Dick."

Bruce looked at Coba apologetically. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have rushed us out without you giving thanks."

The small girl looked up at her legal guardian solemnly. "Don't be sorry. You were in the right of mind to have us leave at that time: any moment later then Terry and Gordon wouldn't still be here. They'd be facing the Joker in 1999, and we both know very well what that's like- -and how it would end up for both of them."

Wayne let out a sigh of despair. "You're right as usual, Coba. But still- -"

"I know," Coba gently cut him off. She let out a troubled sigh as well, looking towards the entrance of the Batcave absent-mindedly. "I know." A quick sign of movement caught her eye. Her eyes' mood changed from sorrowful to dangerous. "Who's there?"

A large man stepped out from the shadows at the sound of the girl's voice. Bruce and Coba's eyes went wide in surprise, but were unafraid. "An old friend, Coba," he said calmly, walking towards them.

Terry protectively placed himself in front of Brooklyn. "You'll have to be more specific," he snapped. "Who are you? How do you know her?"

Coba lightly touched her half-brother's shoulder. "It's alright, Terry," she said reassuringly in a quiet voice. "That's Dick Grayson: the first Robin and the first Nightwing."

* * *

**Author's Notes:**

**What's Dick Grayson doing in the Batcave at this time? Find out next in Epilogue!**

_**Aww, man! Epilogue is next **_**already**_**?!**_

**Yes, yes it is. Don't worry, though: I highly doubt you'll be disappointed by it.**

_**Oh, okay. I'll take your word for it.**_

** Please leave a review!**


	11. Epilogue

**Author's Notes:**

**Here we are at last, viewers: the epilogue! Took a while to get here, didn't it? **

**In the last chapter, Dick Grayson made a special appearance in the Batcave. Exactly what is he doing in there? The answer to that question lies in the following chapter. Please read and review...**

* * *

Grayson stopped directly in front of Terry, who was still speechless with shock at the mention of the man's name. He grinned harmlessly at the teen. "So you're the new Batman, eh? How's that been working out?"

Terry snapped himself out of his shock. "It's been okay," he said modestly. "Kinda hard to keep up on my homework, though."

"I've been there before, kid," Dick said with a smile. He looked at Coba. "Glad you're still in one piece," he told the girl. "I was worried that you'd be killed by Spellbinder. I was relieved when Barb told me otherwise."

"We are _all_ relieved," Bruce agreed with a grin. He looked at the teenage boy, his grin completely evaporated. "Terry, would you mind taking Max home?"

McGinnis looked at him quizzically. "Why? Are you trying to be secretive?"

"Yes," Bruce said bluntly. "There's something Dick and I need to discuss with Coba."

"Okay," Terry sighed. "Let's go, Max."

Gibson followed her friend out of the cave. _I hope Coba will be able to handle what they tell her_, she thought grimly. _Their faces were freakishly grim, even for Bruce!_

Coba waited until her brother and their friend were out of the cave before she looked at the two men. "What is it?" she asked.

"Right after you left, Joker was arrested and put in jail," Dick said solemnly. "Two months later, he escaped and found another boy to be his victim."

A knot formed in Coba's stomach. "Oh no," she breathed. "I dare ask: who was it?"

"Hal," the one-eyed man replied gravely. "He was already a criminal, but Joker figured he'd be a better one if Joker did what he had planned to do to Tim on Hal."

The girl did not relax one bit. "That's not all, is it?"

"It's not," Bruce said sadly, tears of grief filling his eyes. "Damian snuck after us the night we faced Joker- -right after he tortured Hal. Joker aimed a gun at my face at some point. Damian jumped on him and got him away from me, an action that cost him his life. Joker pointed the gun through a part in his upper chest and shot himself, killing Damian instantly." The man turned his head away, ashamed to let his friends see his tears.

"Joker died of his injuries too, I assume?"

Bruce could only nod.

Coba was quiet for a minute, sorrow overwhelming her senses. _He was only five_, she thought. _Damian was only five when he died._

The one-eyed man knew his companions were grieving for Damian, but he also knew better than to let them dwell too long on their grief. "Bruce, Coba!" he said in an enthusiastic voice. "I've got something for ya." He made sure they were both looking at him before lifting up a small, black and brown ball of fur from inside a large waist pouch and handing it to Coba. "I had to make sure Bruce and Ace were alright with you having a pet of your own."

A fur ball looked at Coba through two beady eyes. The girl's eyes went wide. "A young giant rat?" she asked in awe.

"Yeah," Grayson said in surprise. "How'd you know that it's a young one?"

Coba grinned. "The tail isn't scaly enough to be that of an adult, its paws and ears are still too big for its body, and it's fur is not coarse enough to be an adult's. Definitely a young one."

The rat glared defiantly at Coba as it chattered with rage. "_Hey, my soft fur got me picked out, know-it-all!_" she heard him say.

"_You sure it wasn't that 'charming' tongue of yours, mouthy?_" Coba shot back in his language.

The black and brown rat was stunned to hear a human talking to him in his native tongue. "_Whoa, how did you do that?_" he asked.

"_I made an animal communicator once and learned some of your language,_" Coba explained. "_I made another one six months ago, though._"

"English, Coba," Bruce chided his ward.

"Sorry," Batgirl apologized to Wayne and Grayson. "I got a bit carried away."

Dick grinned benignly. "A _bit_?"

Coba returned the grin. "Okay, maybe a _few_ bits." She suddenly gave the former Nightwing a hug. "Thanks, Dick," she said gratefully.

"What _did you just call him?_" the rat asked in surprise.

"_That's just his nickname,_" Coba whispered. "_I didn't mean anything offensive by it._"

"_Oh, okay._"

"No Coba," Dick said, hugging her back, "thank _you_."

The girl looked up at him in surprise. "What for?"

"For getting us all together that night," Grayson explained. "It helped us realize how petty our everyday feuds with each other were. If we hadn't faced Joker and that gang the way we did, we never would have learned to get along. Well, get along _better_ than we used to. We're all still bitter towards Bruce, although I must add that him having you around seems to make him easier to hang out with." He paused, then grinned. "You know how some people say 'the world needs a Batman?'"

"Yeah," Coba responded. "What about it?"

"Well, it seems to me that the Batman needs a Batgirl. No, I don't mean it like that," Dick quickly added, noticing Bruce's disgusted face. "I mean as a partner, as a friend- -even as a little sister. I know your brother wouldn't function very well without you, Coba." He glanced at Bruce. "And you didn't function very well without her or Barbara, now did you?"

The first Batman glared at his old friend, but then grinned and softened his gaze. "You're right, I didn't," he confessed. He looked at Brooklyn. "I especially noticed it when you were gone for twenty-four hours: I had a tough time figuring out what was going on with Terry's problem."

Dick was stunned. "You're supposed to be the world's greatest detective, Bruce!" he stated.

"I guess Coba's better at it than I am," Wayne said with a much larger grin, "and she'll be fourteen in two days!"

"Oh boy, you've been slacking since I last saw you three decades ago!"

Coba could not help but grin. "Yeah, Bruce," she teased. "Get with the program!"

All three companions laughed. Even the rat, who was only a little bit familiar with the human language, chuckled. They all knew Bruce was usually the first to "get with the program," but here he was being passed up by a teenage girl. Bruce wiped away a tear from laughing so hard. "I really need to, don't I?" He looked at the rat. "What are you going to call him?"

The rat looked up at Coba. "_My birthname is Maurice, but I prefer to be called Ed._"

"_Why 'Ed?'_" Coba inquired, suspicion in her voice.

"_Because the mascot of Iron Maiden is cool,_" the rat explained.

"_Oh, _that_ Ed,_" Coba sighed in relief. "_I thought you meant as in Edward Nigma._"

"_What, t__he _Riddler_? No, that guy's definitely _not_ cool._"

Brooklyn grinned a little. "_I agree with you on that, buddy._"

The rat blushed. "_I'm your buddy? Aww, that's very nice of you to call me that!__"_

"_I'm not _always_ a nasty person,_" Coba pointed out gently, grinning even bigger. She looked back at Bruce. "I'll call him Ed," she announced.

Bruce raised his eyebrows. "As in Edward Nigma?"

"No," Coba said, laughing because she and the rat just had that discussion. "As in Iron Maiden's mascot."

"Oh, okay," Bruce sighed with relief.

"Now, _that_ Ed's cool!" Dick added.

"_I told ya he's cool,_" the rat grinned at Batgirl.

* * *

**Author's Notes:**

**Interesting ending to this story, eh? Coba hears disturbing news, picks on Bruce, gets a pet rat named Maurice who prefers to be called Ed... enough said. Character poll is still up on my profile page. Reviews are still greatly appreciated, too!**

**I love writing these stories, but I'm not sure about writing another one. Of course, that depends on what you guys think. If you would like me to continue writing them, please send me a private message or state your opinions on the matter in a review.**


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